SEA/RC66/16 - Progress reports on selected regional committee resolutions: consultative expert working group on research and development: financing and coordination (SEA/RC65/R3)
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WHO Regional Office for South-East Asia
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Resolution SEA/RC65/R3 has outlined detailed recommendations and action points for Member States and WHO on the follow-up of the Consultative Expert Working Group on Research and Development: Financing and Coordination (CEWG). The background to the resolution is as follows: the CEWG presented its report to the Sixty-fifth World Health Assembly in May 2012. This report made a number of proposals for new and innovative sources of financing to stimulate research and development (R&D) related to Type II and Type III diseases, and the specific R&D needs of developing countries in relation to Type I diseases. By resolution WHA65.22, Member States resolved to hold consultations at the national level among all relevant stakeholders, as well as in each of the six WHO regional committee meetings scheduled for 2012. They also resolved to hold an open-ended meeting of Member States at WHO headquarters, Geneva to develop consensus. Pursuant to this, Member States of the WHO South-East Asia Region held consultations at national levels and participated in a Regional Technical Consultation from 15 to 17 August 2012 in Bangkok, Thailand, organized by the Regional Office for South-East Asia to develop a regional perspective on the CEWG report. This regional position was reflected in resolution SEA/RC65/R3 at the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia held in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, from 5 to 7 September 2012. This resolution also provided the basis for the draft resolution during the open-ended meeting of all WHO Member States, held from 26 to 28 November 2012 in Geneva which led to resolution WHA66.22 this year. The regional resolution and WHA66.22, inter alia, urge Member States and WHO to strengthen health R&D capacities and investments for diseases that disproportionately affect developing countries. The resolutions also request WHO to establish a global health R&D observatory to monitor and analyse relevant information on health R&D as well as to promote advisory mechanisms. Resolution WHA66.22 calls for specific actions through a strategic workplan to improve monitoring and coordination, and to ensure sustainable funding for health R&D (in line with WHA61.21, Global strategy and plan of action on public health, innovation and intellectual property) and identify projects as a step towards achieving the goal of development and the delivery of affordable, effective, safe and highquality health products. To take SEA/RC65/R3 and WHA66.22 forward, the Regional Office organized a "Regional consultation for developing a strategic workplan as a follow-up of the Consultative Expert Working Group on Research and Development: Financing and Coordination” from 25 to 26 July 2013 in Bangkok, Thailand. This meeting enabled discussions on the next steps on both these resolutions and for prioritizing activities for the Region (executive summary is included as an Annex). The High-Level Preparatory (HLP) Meeting held in the Regional Office in New Delhi, India, from 1 to 3 July 2013 reviewed the attached working paper and made the following recommendations: Actions by Member States (1) To engage in developing a strategic workplan for the Region as a follow-up of the Consultative Expert Working Group on Research and Development: Financing and Coordination. (2) To explore mechanisms for promoting and strengthening health research and development, including coordination, monitoring and capacity building. Actions by WHO-SEARO (1) To assist countries in promoting and in exploring mechanisms for strengthening health research and development including coordination, monitoring and capacity building. (2) To include in the working paper for presentation to the Sixty-sixth Regional Committee the outcomes of the Regional Technical Consultation (July 2013). (3) To assist in prioritizing projects, as part of the strategic workplan, through regional consultations and broad engagement of relevant stakeholders. (4) To explore information sharing mechanisms in respect of health R&D to enable identification of gaps in countries, including employing the global health R&D observatory for this purpose. The working paper and the HLP recommendations, along with an executive summary of the "Regional consultation for developing a strategic workplan as a follow-up of the Consultative Expert Working Group on Research and Development: Financing and Coordination" are submitted to the Sixty-sixth Session of the Regional Committee for its consideration.